Sprint says text messaging fee going up

If you read the announcement in your latest Sprint cellular bill, you might be tempted to think that the cost of providing text messages was going up. Subcribers got a note in their August bills saying the basic price of individual text messages was going from 15 cents to 20 cents come Oct. 1. This would be one year after Sprint raised those same rates from 10 cents to 15 cents.

So is the cost of text messages going up? No, says Sprint. They’re just trying to “improve the customer experience.” What that means is that they’re trying to push customers on to their text messaging plans and away from individual text message pricing. The “improvement” comes from the fact that some people find their text messaging bill fluctuates each month depending on how much they text. Some months, you text a few times and it’s no big deal. After a heavy month, you’re talking some serious money.

“It’s a better text message experience to know what you’ll be paying each month rather than having it vary month to month,” said Sprint spokeswoman Emmy Anderson. “We think we offer a good way to control upfront what your wireless bill is going to be.”

So Sprint is saying: get on the subscription plan and you won’t get those nasty surprises in your bill. But it appears they’re raising individual texting rates to make the plans seem more attractive. And yes, when you look at the pricing for the plans with the new individual rate in mind, they may have a case. They now offer 300 text messages a month for $5 or unlimited text messages for $10 a month. Those are some of the lowest prices among the big four carriers. In fact, Sprint dropped the price of its unlimited texting plan back in January from $15 a month, which is about the industry standard right now.

But while Sprint can argue that their plans are coming down in price, it seems disengenous to raise the rates on individual text messages. Either the cost of providing text messages is going up or it’s not. Providing a deal on plans might speak to a lot of customers but there are still subscribers who just want to send a few text messages here and there. It seems like they’re being punished for not paying the $5 a month just to get the minimum text messaging plan. Over time, that adds up.

The thing is this is not just a Sprint deal. You can probably expect with some degree of certainty that AT&T, Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile will follow suit in the future. They followed Sprint’s move last fall when it raised individual text message rates.

The kicker to all of this is that customers who don’t like the higher fees can’t end their contract without paying an early termination fee. Because casual text messaging is basically an a la carte service and doesn’t come with a set term or contract, Sprint can change the pricing and not be obligated to cut loose customers who want to get out because of it without paying an early termination fee.

So what do you think? Should we be happy that text messaging plans are coming down in price? Or should we be miffed that individual text message prices are going up?